Australian trade, investment & economy
Do multinational corporations pay all the tax they should?
Is this a silly question to ask, given the reported low taxes paid by Google, Apple, Yahoo, Starbucks and others? The G20 and OECD think there is a major problem and have launched…
Australia is not meeting its IEA oil reserve targets
The plunge in the global oil price is a hot topic. Between June 2014 and January 2015, the price of crude has dropped by 57%. Most of the attention has been on the boon for…
Murray Report: Capital levels a domestic concern, not international
One of the most striking aspects of the final report from the Australian Financial System Inquiry (AFSI), chaired by David Murray, is the proposal that the future capital…
Why Peter Thiel is wrong about monopolies
A few weeks ago Sam Roggeveen quoted PayPal founder Peter Thiel, who argued that competition is over-rated and monopoly would enhance innovation. We shouldn't be surprised that…
A 'barbarous relic': Why can't interest rates be negative?
Overnight, the European Central Bank once again opted for timidity, with interest rates remaining unchanged. The scale of the deflationary threat Europe faces is awesome. However,…
Beyond the Boom: A response to John Edwards
Senior economic policy makers, economic analysts, academics and commentators have been concerned about the daunting challenge of structural and budget adjustment facing Australia…
Beyond the Boom: A response to Jonathan Pincus
In a paper published recently on the Minerals Council of Australia website, Adelaide-based economist Jonathan Pincus takes issue with some of the calculations I make in my Lowy…
APEC in Beijing: Too many trade initiatives and too little progress
The APEC Leaders' Meeting underway in Beijing seems to be finessing the various conflicting and overlapping trade initiatives and avoiding serious damage. But it is not resolving…
Australian Customs: A bigger role to play in trade
In a new Lowy Institute Analysis launched today, Nicholas Humphries, the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service Fellow at the Lowy Institute, examines how Customs can…
Australia needs a role in Asia's emerging economy boom
With other international institutions reiterating their forecasts of declining growth in the emerging economies, the latest Asian Development Bank Outlook Update has a more…